Functional and Genomic Evidence of L-Arginine-Dependent Bacterial Nitric Oxide Synthase Activity in <i>Paenibacillus nitricinens</i> sp. nov.

ABSTRACT: Although nitric oxide (NO) production in bacteria has traditionally been associated with denitrification or stress responses in model or symbiotic organisms, functionally validated L-arginine-dependent nitric oxide synthase (bNOS) activity has not been documented in free-living, non-denitrifying soil bacteria. This paper reports Paenibacillus nitricinens sp. nov., a bacterium isolated from rainforest soil capable of synthesizing NO via a bNOS under aerobic conditions. A bnos-specific PCR confirmed gene presence, while whole-genome sequencing (6.7 Mb, 43.79% GC) revealed two nitrogen metabolism pathways, including a bnos-like gene. dDDH (<70%) and ANI (<95%) values with related Paenibacillus strains support the delineation of this isolate as a distinct species. E

SUBMITTER: Saavedra-Tralma D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12189478 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature